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Raver
The Ravers - and there are precisely three - are terrifying and malignant incorporeal entities that are foremost amongst the servants of Lord Foul. Given that a) the latter never seems to get out and about and that b) all three Ravers are highly skilled at possessing all manner of creatures, it is perhaps unsurprising that these unclean spirits are the most trusted of the Despiser's lieutenants. The Ravers have a deep knowledge of the most evil of sorceries, one that is only exceeded by their master. This fearsome trio appears in all three Chronicles. Appearance and Nature (tba) Origins and Pre-history The origins of the Ravers are never made entirely clear. It is said that they were engendered by the noisome vileness of the Sarangrave Flat - home to the Lurker - at the time of the One Forest, long before the coming of man to the Land. This is a feasible theory, given that the Sarangrave and the great swamp that lies therein have long been polluted by evil effluvia flowing down Defile's Course from the bowels of Mount Thunder. Let it not be forgotten that measureless depths beneath Mount Thunder have for eons been used as a sorcerous garbage dump for any noxious banes. From their very beginnings, the Ravers harboured an absolute detestation of all living things, but especially trees. Their abomination of Earthpower is well-known, so it's very likely that the One Forest, which symbolized the very essence of the Land attracted their abhorrence. When humans finally arrived, the Ravers seized their chance and exhorted the weak-willed immigrants to get lumberjacking as much as possible - a thing which resulted in the diminishing of the One Forest and its separation into five lesser parts. The amount of overexuberant slash-and-burning and arboreal decimation attracted the attention of the Elohim - possibly because even at that distance, the faint acrid tang of smoke started to sully the balmy sea breezes that waft over Elemesnedene. The haughty fey folk would have considered this the height of bad manners, especially if any faintly blown ash were ever to besmirch their über-fashionable designer samite robes. So, as is typical whenever anything bothers the Elohim, they held a rigged ballot, singling out the unfortunate faery who was seen as being the least chic that week. This "volunteer" they Appointed to become eternally bored by being transmogrified into a large yet magical slab of rock, standing upon the upper edge of Landsdrop and entitled the Colossus of the Fall. The arcane emanations from this eldritch pillar served to repulse the Ravers and kept them from entering the Upper Land for many generations. At the same time, the Elohim claim that they had a hand in the emergence of the five original Forestals - hippy-ish tree elementals of leguminous puissance, who were tasked with caring for and protecting the remaining forests of the Land. As has been noted elsewhere, it is uncertain if this is entirely factually correct, since the tricksy fey folk will always claim credit for any idea that they deem to be super-cool, but it is certainly true that the Forestals came into being at around the same time. Thus it is explained why Ravers and Forestals are the most ancient and the most implacable of enemies. Names The three Ravers are known as moksha Jehannum, turiya Herem and samadhi Sheol respectively, a thing which gives etymologists serious stirrings in the groinal area. Let's deal with these in some sort of order, and commencing with those names springing from Sanskrit first:- Moksha is a concept from Hinduism, loosely meaning the absence of suffering and a release from bondage. Turiya has the same linguistic origins and delineates the experience of pure consciousness. Samadhi is once more a Hindu term, denoting a state of complete control over the functions and distractions of consciousness. The perplexing thing is that none of the above are seen as undesirable states of being in the least, so it's baffling why SRD selected them as names for some of the most malevolent entities appearing within the Chronicles - perhaps he got frightened as a child in India by some wild-eyed loincloth-clad guru or other crazed swami? However... Turning now to those names of a Middle Eastern origin, things make a lot more sense:- Jehannum is directly related to the Arabic "jahannum", itself springing from the Hebrew word "gehenna" and describes the Islamic conception of Hell. Herem could have several etymological roots, but the most likely is again the Arabic word "haram", originating from the Hebraic "herem". In Islam, "haram" is a term reserved to describe the most morally repugnant and loathsome of sins, a transgression so heinous that it warrants excommunication, expulsion or exile. The roots of Sheol are simpler; it's straight from the Hebrew and means the underworld or abode of the dead, a place of darkness entirely cut off from God. Whew - we can get our heads round those, then. Role in the First Chronicles (tba) Role in the Second Chronicles (tba) Role in the Third Chronicles (tba) Category:Creatures Category:The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant Category:The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant Category:The Third Chronicles of Thomas Covenant